Family Newsletter

It's nice to meet you!

Hello! I am Bri Knighton, incoming senior director of Expedition Behavioral Education, and I am incredibly excited to (digitally) meet you! Many of your students are familiar faces, as I have had the pleasure of working alongside the Olympic Academy and Summit Academy teams the last two years in my previous role as the director of Pathfinder Services, our district support and outreach team. 

Our team has been hard at work this August preparing to welcome your students when they arrive back on campus on September 1. This year is my 11th first day of school as an educator, and each one is just as exciting as the last. 

A few more hellos…

We have a few additional team updates as we move into the 2026–27 school year, including some new faces following a few bittersweet goodbyes. 

Olympic Academy

Amy Dunnagan has moved into the program director role and will oversee our Olympic Academy teams, working in conjunction with director Sheila Ammons, a new addition to our team who brings a wealth of knowledge and experience. These two amazing leaders will be your go-to Olympic Academy connections as we wish Miranda Leeper and Paige Ollikainen the best of luck in their new roles. 

Summit Academy

Magdalena Casimiro will continue to act as the program director for Summit Academy. She is joined this year by Nadia Cherraj, who has made the transition from Olympic Academy teacher to Summit Academy director of Instructional Support. We are incredibly excited for the expertise Nadia will bring to her new role.

Pathfinder Services

Dustin Dixon has jumped in as the new director of Pathfinder Services, shifting from his prior work with this team as a BCBA. Dustin brings incredible knowledge and experience to the Pathfinder team and is excited to continue partnering with local districts to support students and staff.

The rest of our team remains the same hardworking and dedicated group of teachers, teacher associates, and RBTs that have been working with you over the last year. We are excited for these next steps and look forward to continuing to serve students together. 

Celebrations

Extended School Year (ESY) just wrapped up its second year for qualified Summit Academy students, and the team did an excellent job working with students. We even got to wish one of our aging-out students a heartfelt goodbye; tears were shed, cupcakes were eaten, and our wonderful student was celebrated on their final day of school — ever! 

Staff highlight: Scotty Sullivan

Scotty serves as our go-to guy in his role as Facilities and Maintenance repair technician. Scotty helps ensure that our building is in working order, makes any updates or repairs, and ensures that the space is ready for students and staff. We appreciate Scotty and all he does to support our Expedition team.

Reminders

Information updates

Please let our teams know if you have any updates to your or your child’s contact information, medical records, or other information that will help our team better serve your child. 

Meals

We are proud to provide daily breakfast and lunch to our students. Please see our website for the monthly breakfast and lunch menus. 

School calendar

• September 1–4: 1 pm early release

• September 7: No school

• September 28: No school

• October 30: No school

• Wednesdays: 1 pm early release, weekly

Open house

We would like to welcome you to an open house the evening of September 29 from 5–7 pm at our Summit and Olympic Academy Program sites. Keep an eye out for more information and a call from your child’s teacher. 

We're wishing you all a wonderful rest of your summer and a fabulous start to the school year!